His Name Was Zach (Book 2): Her Name Was Abby

by Martuneac, Peter

  “This,” Derrick continued, gesturing towards the barracks, “this is what I want. Going out and doing something, making a real difference. Let the politicians talk about what needs to be done to keep us safe, I’d rather be the one who actually does it.”

  Abby nodded and said, “Handsome, capable, and a man of action? Your girlfriend is one lucky lady.”

  “I’m actually kinda between girlfriends at the moment,” Derrick said with a smile.

  “Is that so?”

  “It is so. I dated this girl for a couple of weeks last year, but she had dreams of being a senator and, well, you know how I feel about that.”

  “Hm,” was all Abby said in reply. They had reached the barracks by now and were climbing the stairs to reach their floor.

  Derrick chuckled nervously and said, “So uh, what about you? I mean, you’re gorgeous, you can handle yourself in a fight. Is there a lucky guy somewhere?”

  Abby’s mind ran to Hiamovi but of course she couldn’t mention him.

  “Not yet,” she replied, looking up to Derrick with a smile. She gently touched his arm and said, “But I’ve been told I have really high standards.”

  “Well, I’ve been told I’m an overachiever,” Derrick replied. He opened the door to the third floor, where their rooms were, and held it open for Abby before following her into the hallway.

  “I’ll be completely honest,” Abby said, walking next to Derrick. “I’ve… not had the best luck with men. I jumped into a couple relationships and, well, one of them crushed my heart not long ago.”

  Derrick shook his head solemnly. “I’m sorry,” he said.

  “Don’t be. I’m just letting you know that I do like you, and I’m open to a relationship, but it’s gotta be slow. Maybe a lot slower than you’d like.”

  “How slow?”

  “Let’s just say don’t plan on getting to second base any time soon, slugger.”

  “Well, I’ve hit home runs and I’ve struck out. I’m alright with a single.”

  “Oh yeah, gonna brag about your home runs to the girl you’re hoping to date now?”

  “In my defense, I realized that was pretty stupid as I was saying it.”

  They stood outside their respective rooms now, across the narrow hall from each other. Silence hung in the air as Abby fished the keycard to her room out of her back pocket.

  “Tell you what,” she said, “sleep on it, and come back next time with a better line.”

  “And when will next time be?”

  “Surprise me,” Abby said. She smiled and winked at Derrick, but her face turned serious and she added, “But not tomorrow. I’m exhausted.”

  Derrick laughed and said, “Fair enough. See you, Abby.”

  “Bye, Derrick.”

  Abby stepped forward and leaned into Derrick, wrapping her arms up around his neck in a hug. It felt awkward and forced, and she was a little embarrassed, but she felt like the moment required some kind of physical affection, even if it wasn’t a kiss.

  Derrick put his arms around Abby in return, placing his hands squarely on the middle of her back; not too high, not too low. He chuckled and said, “I gotta admit, I almost flinched. Last time you had your arms around my neck it didn’t go so well for me.”

  Abby laughed as she pulled back from the embrace and hit him in the shoulder, then turned around and unlocked her door as Derrick did the same.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  In the following weeks, Abby went on more dates with Derrick, at least once a week. They’d go watch movies, eat a fancy dinner, or, in a pinch, grab a quick breakfast in the chow hall before going out to train with their squads. And on each date, Abby was able to turn the conversation towards something political or military in nature, and Derrick never showed a single sign of suspicion.

  Abby began to think that this job was not quite as dangerous as they all had assumed at the beginning. Getting in was dangerous, and getting out might be worse, but the simple fact was that no one seemed to think it remotely possible that a mole could have found her way this far into the DAS.

  And so from Derrick Abby learned of a small number of senators who were known to be at least slightly sympathetic to the ReFounding Fathers. They never came out in public support of them, of course. That’d be treason. But they did question some of the government’s decisions and how it handled The Crisis. She gave these names to Hiamovi, who relayed the information to Hector so that he could try to arrange communications with them.

  The most surprising thing she learned from talking to Derrick was that the ‘Helping Hand’ mission talked about back in Little America was a complete ruse. She and Derrick had been seated in a theater, talking quietly as they waited for the movie to begin, when Abby mentioned that she had heard through the grapevine that the military was planning for a massive operation that would liberate the country.

  Derrick laughed and said, “Wow, that’s probably one of the biggest whoppers I’ve heard around the barracks. No, no there’s nothing of the sort being planned.”

  Abby, downplaying her shock, replied, “Really? It made a lot of sense to me when I heard it. I mean, aren’t there lots of people still out there?”

  “Yeah,” Derrick responded, “but it’s too risky. Think about it pragmatically: the zombies will all be dying out sooner or later. And when they do, we can try to put the country back together. But imagine we send a force out to eradicate them, what happens if a squad or a platoon is ambushed by a pack of them? What happens if there’s a massive horde stalking a city, and a whole regiment gets infected? It’ll be another crisis. That’s dad’s reasoning, at least. It sucks, but I get it. Don’t you?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, I get it,” Abby lied. Desiring to switch topics before she became emotional, she said, “Speaking of your dad, when do I get to meet him?”

  Derrick cringed in a dramatic fashion and said, “You know, meeting the parents is so last year. What’s hip now is to just, you know, never meet the parents.”

  He used ‘parents’ in the plural sense, though Abby knew he didn’t have a mother. He never brought it up, so neither did she, knowing too well how it felt to lose your mother. And your father.

  “What? You don’t want to show me off?” Abby asked.

  “No, God no. That’s not it at all,” Derrick replied. “I want to show you off to the entire world, Abby. It’s my dad. He’s… intense. He’ll probably be a huge asshole to you, trying to make sure you’re ‘good enough’ for me and I don’t wanna subject you to that.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah. And more importantly, I don’t want him to scare you off.”

  Abby smiled and said, “I’m a big girl, I can handle some intensity.”

  Derrick’s reply was cut off as the theater darkened and the movie began to play, silencing their hushed conversation. The movie, though, was awful, and halfway through Abby and Derrick resumed whispering during the quiet parts, much to the annoyance of the couple a few rows in front of them, who shot a mean look over their shoulders once or twice.

  But Derrick relented, and agreed to bring Abby to dinner with his father. It would have to be at least a couple weeks later though, given the busy schedule inherent with being the president. Abby didn’t mind waiting, as this would give her a chance to update Hiamovi with this exciting news later that week. They had not met since just before her first ‘date’ with Derrick, and she was dying to see him, feeling starved for some physical affection. Shockingly, Derrick didn’t seem at all bothered by the nearly complete lack of a physical component to their relationship. In fact, he seemed to be having an easier time dealing with it than Abby.

  That’s what was on Abby’s mind as she waited for Hiamovi to show up at their designated location: a small, rundown house not far from District 3. Abby chose such a remote place primarily because she felt like talking about spying on the president was a conversation to be had as far away from District 1 as she could get. Truth be told though, she had an ulterior motive for meeting Hia
movi in a secluded spot.

  Hiamovi approached the dilapidated house a few minutes later, pushing aside the broken front door and stepping into the main room to find Abby seated on a torn-up, green couch, reading a book. She smiled and jumped up to embrace him, then led him upstairs.

  Several minutes later, laying naked on a musty old mattress (disgusting, yes, but their options were limited these days), Abby finally updated Hiamovi on her progress.

  “I can’t believe you’re going to be meeting President Arthur,” Hiamovi said. He didn’t like that idea at all, and he worried about Abby’s safety, but he had learned by now that any remarks of that kind would be brushed aside.

  “Yeah. Dinner and drinks at his house,” Abby replied.

  “What are you going to try to find out?”

  “Still working on that. I’ll come up with some conversation topics well in advance though, don’t you worry.”

  “What if he asks about you?”

  “I’m not worried about that. I got a little information about the girl I’m pretending to be in a document from her parents when they dropped me off, and I’ll be sure to keep the talk vague and whimsical.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got it all worked out.”

  “Yup.”

  Hiamovi turned to look at Abby. She was chewing on her lip and wearing a blank expression as she stared down at her fidgeting fingers. She started, noticing suddenly Hiamovi’s gaze, and gave a weak smile.

  “What else is on your mind?” he asked.

  Abby grimaced. She had not been looking forward to this part of their conversation, and admittedly it was part of the reason for why she had taken Hiamovi upstairs in the first place, hoping to soften the blow of an uncomfortable topic with a little preemptive passion.

  “Well, as it turns out, things are going really well with the president’s son,” Abby began. She never used Derrick’s name with Hiamovi, hoping it made her sound distant and uncaring, like this was purely business.

  “Oh yeah? You think he’s the one, huh?”

  “Just waiting on a ring at this point.”

  “Do I get an invitation to the wedding?”

  “Will you bring a gift?”

  “Sure.”

  “What will it be?”

  “I’m thinking toaster.”

  “Then no invite for you.”

  They giggled and then kissed again. Abby sat up though and said, “No, seriously. This undercover gig is going pretty well. You know? I finally feel like we’re accomplishing something. Hanging around with this guy has brought us all kinds of advantages already. But, all kidding aside, that does mean that the relationship is going well, too. For him, I mean. He really likes me a lot, and it looks like this might go on longer than I originally thought.”

  “Okay. Uh, that’s good, right?” Hiamovi asked. He looked confused, like he wasn’t sure where Abby was heading with this. With a sigh, she continued.

  “Sooo,” she said slowly, “I probably have to take things just… a liiiiiitle bit farther with him. For instance, I should probably start… kissing him.”

  “Oh,” was all Hiamovi could say.

  “Yeah,” Abby replied.

  Silence stretched between them, and several seconds passed before Hiamovi sat up straighter and said, “So you brought me all the way out here and got me into bed so you could tell me you’re gonna show your boyfriend a good time?”

  “Don’t be like that,” Abby said. “First of all, we’re up here because I miss you. Second of all, this is a cover. It always has been, and it always will be. I don’t like it any more than you do, trust me.”

  Hiamovi scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, must be so terrible to have to make out with your hot boyfriend over there.”

  “I don’t care if he’s attractive or not, I only care about the connections he could help me make.”

  “Oh, sure. Hell, sounds like you’re already making at least one great connection.”

  “Stop it! This is hard enough without you throwing a fit, Derr— Hiamovi!”

  It was just a tiny slip of the tongue, and Abby quickly corrected herself, but Hiamovi caught it.

  “Did you just call me by his name?” he asked.

  Abby sighed. “I am with him all the time, it was just out of habit. I’m sorry, I am.”

  “Are you? First you ask if you can kiss this guy, then you call me by his name, what’s next? You gonna tell me you were thinking of him while we were— “

  “Look, if you’re gonna be an ass about it, I’ll just leave,” Abby interrupted in an annoyed voice. She rolled off the mattress and walked across the room to get dressed.

  “Abby. Look, I’m sorry,” Hiamovi said. She didn’t turn around or even acknowledge him so he got up to go join her. “I’m sorry,” he repeated, “I was being an ass, you’re right. I just hate thinking about you being with this guy. I love you, and I know it’s for the mission, but can you blame me for not being totally psyched about your cover?”

  Abby finished getting dressed before she turned back to face Hiamovi, though with a softer look in her eyes this time. “Yes, you were being an ass,” she said. “But I do understand. I wouldn’t be too thrilled either if it was your job to be hooking up with some girl. So I get it, and I’m sorry for snapping at you.”

  “I just need you to remember the big picture, why I’m doing this. We could very well bring this whole war to an end in a matter of months. When was the last time we ever had a chance like this? So yeah, I’m gonna have to kiss him a bit to keep up the ruse, but that’s it. He’s not gonna get any more action than that. I promise, Hiamovi. I really don’t enjoy this. Any time I spend with him just reminds me that I’m not with you, and that’s hard. I need you to trust me.”

  Hiamovi gave Abby a sheepish look, then nodded his head, “Okay.”

  “Okay,” Abby parroted.

  There was a long silence, unbroken for several seconds until Abby said, “I should get back. I’ll get in touch with you when I have something good.”

  “Alright,” Hiamovi said as he himself got dressed again.

  Abby kissed him one more time and told him, “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” he replied. “I hope this works, and soon. I’m tired of these quickies.”

  “Yeah. Way too quick for me, but the length of time is kinda up to you and your… ” Abby said with a gesture towards Hiamovi’s waistband, allowing the incomplete thought to hang there.

  Hiamovi laughed, hitting Abby playfully. “Oh it’s like that, huh? I’ll have you know that we have to be quick about it.”

  “Yes, dear. I’m sure that’s the only reason,” Abby whispered, giving Hiamovi a mischievous wink. She cast a longing glance at Hiamovi, her eyes locking with his for several heartbeats, and then she left.

  Abby departed the house and straightaway headed back to District 1. She gave the proper password to enter through the small door next to the gate and almost ran right into Derrick.

  “Hey, honey!” she said, putting on a smile. Looking into his eyes, a bright shade of blue like ocean water lapping against a Caribbean beach, she could see that her smile melted his heart, and that made hers drop into her boots. After getting to know Derrick, talking over lunch or snuggling silently on the couch in Derrick’s room while a cheesy movie played on TV, she had come to like him. Not in an affectionate way, of course, but it pained her to deceive such a nice guy like him. But collateral damage is part and parcel with fighting a war, and there was much worse Abby could do than break a heart.

  “Hey,” Derrick said, smiling back. He looked her down and up once and said, “God, has anyone told you today how beautiful you are?”

  Abby looked away, shaking her head. “You’re so full of it,” she replied, but Derrick acted like he didn’t hear her.

  “You look so perfect, I almost don’t want to give you this,” he said. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a long, slender, black case and held it out to Abby.

  She looked at
it in disbelief for a second, wearing an uncertain smile as she looked from the case to Derrick and back to the case. She took it and opened it to find a small, deep green emerald, cut in the shape of half a sphere, suspended from a delicate but dazzling gold chain.

  “A necklace?” she asked, knowing what it was but finding words difficult at the moment. No one had ever bought her jewelry before, especially not such a beautiful piece like this.

  “I figured I didn’t need that emerald-encrusted golden spoon anymore now that I’m a grown man,” he said, “so I had it melted down and fashioned into this.”

  “Derrick,” Abby said, still struggling for words. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome,” he replied.

  She pulled the necklace from the case and fastened it around her neck, fingering the emerald as it lay flat against her chest. She looked up at Derrick again and decided to act. She grabbed him by the shirt and, with quite a bit more passion than intended, kissed him.

  When she finally let him go, Derrick stepped back and said, “Wow. If I’d known I could have bought our first kiss with a necklace I would have got this a long time ago.”

  “Oh, shut up,” she laughed, and she kissed him again. “It’s almost Valentine’s Day. We’ve been dating long enough that I feel like kissing you now.”

  “Good,” Derrick replied. “Don’t take this the wrong way but I’d been starting to wonder if this was going to work out.”

  “Hey, I told you upfront that I needed to take this slow.”

  “I guess I underestimated just how slow you meant. But now I know. And I’m still totally onboard with taking it slow. Because I… I really like you.”

  “I like you too,” Abby replied sweetly.

  “I was also hoping you’d wear that when you meet my dad,” Derrick said. “Emeralds are his favorite. Oh, and tell him you bought it yourself.”